It wouldn't do

"But, She said, I suppose it wouldn't do For everyone to be the same now, Would it."

Instructions & downloads

Do the Preparation task first. Then go to Text and read the poem or story (you can also listen to the audio while you read). Next go to Task and do the activity.

Text

It wouldn't do

by John Kay

But,
She said,
I suppose it wouldn't do
For everyone to be the same now,
Would it.

No,
I said,
There'd be less
Interesting people around,
Wouldn't there.

Fewer interesting people,
She said,
But I suppose it wouldn't do
For everyone to speak the same now,
Would it.

Task

Decide if the statements are true or false.

Exercise

Notes

Introduction: 

This clever and amusing poem was written by John Kay, who was the winner of the White Adder International EFL Poetry Competition. He teaches English and trains teachers in Bournemouth, England.

Discussion
Your rating: None (4 votes)

Comments

I liked this amusing poem a

I liked this amusing poem a lot. Plus it's great to hear someone's reading it in a  way it needs to be read! Thank you!

nice!!

nice!!

It wouldn't work?

Hello British Council,
Could you please, give me any other way to say "it wouldn't do"  as I'm not quite sure to understand it?
By the way, the last two lines of the text aren't recorded.
Thanks a lot for your kind reply,
Oscar

Hello Oscar, Thanks for

Hello Oscar,
Thanks for telling me about the problem with the audio. I will fix it as soon as possible.
'It wouldn't do' means something a bit similar to 'it would be a bad situation'. Does that help?
Best wishes,
Adam
The LearnEnglish Team

affirmative

Hello Adam,
Does "It would do" mean something a bit similar to 'it would be a good situation' or that kind of sentence is only used as a negative one? I must say that this is my first time with "It wouldn't do".
May I say: It would do for everyone to know all the English grammar rules in order to understand this language?
Hoping to hear from you,
Oscar

Hello Oscar, That's an

Hello Oscar,
That's an excellent question!
No, people don't usually use 'it would do' in the same way. I should say as well that 'it wouldn't do' is not a common expression and you probably shouldn't use it until you are familiar with how it's used.
Best wishes,
Adam
The LearnEnglish Team

nice

nice

i wish to have more

i   wish to  have  more

I like it.

I like it.

Hello, I am not sure if I

Hello, I am not sure if I understood the deep meaning of this poem. But It's good one. Thank you guys for helping us with your professional supplies.

Main Links

Text Only Options

Top of page


Text Only Options

Open the original version of this page.

Usablenet Assistive is a UsableNet product. Usablenet Assistive Main Page.